Azeroth to Kalimdor
by Maulbane
Summary: An old story I made quite a few years ago when I had only a vague grasp of Warcraft lore. Maulbane hunts down a rogue panther, and afterwards leaves for home on a zeppelin! Also, there is no ending. Sorry in advance.
1. Chapter 1

"Young Maulbane, I have a very important task for you.

"Yes, Chief Hawkwind?"

"I need you to go past the hill and get some water from the well."

Maulbane as a child had thought that was an unimportant task, and begged the Chieftan to allow him to go hunting Plainstriders (without taking too long to describe, they looked kind of like emus) but now as he looked back on that time he understood the values he learned from that rather ordinary test. Respect for one's elders is an important virtue, and he understood fully what it meant now, lying under the stars with only his (rather large) backpack to sleep on. As he pondered on his childhood as a young Tauren, his companion Goretusk was sticking his snout into a sack (which had a rather delicious looking plainstrider leg inside it).

Maulbane caught this in the corner of his eye and chuckled, being brought back to reality at least for now. He scooped up Goretusk (No easy feat, considering he had been feeding the already heavily built boar with apple pies, plainstrider legs and other not-too-healthy treats) and placed him next to him, still smiling.

He then turned his mind to the task at hand - hunting. He had been asked by the guard captain down at Grom'Gol outpost to hunt an extremely elusive cat (a panther, to be truthful) that had been doing some hunting of its own, chowing down on some of the guards at Grom'Gol that were too tired to notice it sneaking up - a rather macabre way of keeping everyone nice and alert from then on. So when Maulbane arrived at the outpost, the people there asked him to find this animal and end its spree.

As he drifted back into reality, he saw Goretusk putting his big snout into the sack again, so he got up and tied the sack closed. Since he was up, he decided to look for any clues of its whereabouts. He scouted around the camp site, looking for obvious clues such as tracks and the like, and being the great companion he is, Goretusk followed suit, sniffing around the tree trunks and ground in the jungle. Maulbane found nothing apart from the old tracks he had spotted yesterday, which after he followed for something like half an hour, only managed to lead to him a Crocilisk's den, complete with furious, snapping Crocolisks. Crocilisks look exactly like crocodiles, but with an extra set of legs. They're also much more aggressive. He managed to get out of that situation with some effort from both him and Goretusk, luckily.

He sighed and ran one of his huge three fingers through his matted mane which ran across his back (originally his personal pride as he neared adulthood, weeks in the Stranglethorn jungle had solved that with ease). Coming across a knot, he decided to continue searching and to stop being so vain. As he thought that (Which he often does whenever he can, and since he is in a barely populated jungle, he can do it a lot, at least until he leaves), Goretusk let out a decently high-pitched squeal, and Maulbane ran over immediately, being an expert on his little friend's vocabulary. Goretusk was far from the camp by now, so he took a while to reach him, but when he did, he noticed what Goretusk had seen.

It was a large deadly looking fang, obviously a panther's. And since he had seen no other panthers anywhere near the camp, nor a den of them anywhere near his camp either, he came to the conclusion that this was a fang from the very panther he was hunting, and from that knew he was on its trail. But even though this was a rather fortunate find, it didn't tell him where it was, what direction it was heading in when it lost the fang or any other similar golder nuggets of information. But now he knew that his prey was in this area, and he was content with that, being a very patient hunter (a common trait for them).

He sniffed the air, more for the atmosphere than it actually serving any purpose, then began to work. He marked the spot he was in in his mind, and began to spiral outwards, rationalizing that if the beast is close to here, he will find it eventually. Goretusk was hot on Maulbane's heels, tagging along for the long hunt ahead. The sight would amaze and dazzle any ordinary city person, or anyone who lived in an area such as the Barrens or Tirisfal Glades (which are unbelievably dull in comparison), and if Maulbane was here as a child he would have been sucked in by the sights, smells and sounds of the amazing place. But he had seen many equally beautiful sights, and even more breathtaking ones, and so he plodded on, foot after foot, or in his case, being a Tauren, hoof after hoof. You had to admire a hunter's determination, which was evident in the way Maulbane never faltered from the long stretch of wild jungle ahead of him, eyes always ahead of him or to his side, searching for any sign of the rogue big cat.

Another piece of proof of his devotion to the work was the way that he, even though being over six feet in size, being clumsily wide and having a full suit of chain mail and leather armour on his person, plus his weapons (one gigantic Axe about as tall as him, and a large gun, both with their own names). Not to mention the armour was further padded with extra leather armour pieces. Trying to run - Even walk too fast - in all that would surely wake up everything living and dead in this place. So he had to walk excruciatingly slow, hunched to make himself a smaller target for any brave animals that may be looking for their next meal, because even though he could probably defeat any gorillas, tigers or Crocolisks here, there are always at least a dozen more animals within half a kilometre in this place. He slowly lost count of the trees he had passed after he passed the number one hundred and twenty-five. "I am now about halfway through his hunt" he thought as he stifled a yawn, but didn't stop for any reason. Goretusk, just as adamant as his friend, didn't make a sound, and also glancing around for any signs of a big panther with only one fang.

It took a while, but finally they found a suspicious trail of vines that looked like they had been walked or ran through by something with four legs, and like he noted before, there are no other panthers are and also barely any other four-legged animals anywhere close, so he began the final stage of the hunt, the most crucial part which requires the most stealth and skill. He slowed down even more, keeping his eye on the unearthed trail of vines. Slowly he walked along, muffling his sound with the expertise of a rogue. There was an obvious trail of blood, alongside the vine trail and from that Maulbane had no doubt that the panther was extremely close, and pulled his gun out, ready to aim. He looked to the left, then the right, because the trail had just become impossible to follow. It had just faltered right in front of him, which means the panther had to be right there... He couldn't see anything though, and it seemed neither could Goretusk from his puzzled look, quietly snuffling around the spot the trail had stopped. Maulbane looked a little bit up, and his heart skipped a beat - The panther was right above him -

In a single second, he began to roll out of the way and aimed his gun for a precise shot at the big cat's head, but the cat had been waiting for him, and had the element of surprise. It Pounced with a bestial roar right onto the surprised Tauren and he then saw its array of weaponry up close. Rows of sharp teeth and one massive fang remaining, and viciously serrated claws were drawn dangerously close to Maulbane's throat. All this in the space of a few seconds, Maulbane was caught surprised, but it took a fraction of a second for his hunter instincts to come forth, gripping the panther's stomach and head and throwing it away like a toy, truly showing the power of Tauren muscles. By now Goretusk, who had stopped earlier to examine the trail, was charging head-first into the momentarily stunned panther, his natural armoury fully shown for the first time for about a week. Four rather hideous tusks coming out his jaw, which itself had a row of large omnivorous teeth slightly protruding outwards. The boar let out a bellowing squeal, not like the ones before, this one was more like a roar. He sped up, faster and faster, closing the distance between himself and the panther, which was already getting up. Meanwhile, Maulbane wasn't wasting any time either, doing a combat roll, pulling out his gun, and firing a shot into the panther's leg. The hunter was used to the resounding crack of the weapon, but the panther, having lived in a fairly remote jungle for its entire life, did not. First it was startled by the shot, Then the steel ball hit its leg, knocking it down completely and (by what he heard) snapping bone. Maulbane reloaded his gun with the skill of someone who had done it over a thousand times (which he had), and fired a second shot at the panther's head. It missed barely, penetrating into the side of its body, but shattering a rib in the process. Goretusk had finally cleared the distance, and a few meters away from the panther, sped up, jumped, and collided.

The way I have been narrating this story, you may think he was a simple household pet or a cute little piggy, but he is a weapon in a sense. In any case, Goretusk knew the extent of his own power, and so did Maulbane. In the present, the boar landed head first, tusks ripping into the now defeated beast. With the efficiency of his owner (neither Maulbane or Goretusk enjoy the term, but it is easier to call it that, even though it is not strictly true) he checked if the animal was dead, which it wasn't, and signalled. Maulbane aimed the large gun directly at the dying animal's head, placed the shot inside the barrel, and pulled the trigger. Maulbane walked grimly over to the now dead adversary and examined it, looking for something so he could prove his kill. He then remembered the fang, and decided to return to Grom'Gol in the morning to collect his reward and hopefully catch the early zeppelin back to his homeland, Kalimdor.

It was sunset as they walked back to their camp, Maulbane's mind on the day's events. He didn't always believe in material rewards for kills (though in such a world they were important), he liked to glean experience from everything he did, believe it made him not only a better hunter, but better in the eyes of the Earthmother, creator of all things and the Taurens' sole deity. Another thing he staunchly believed in was that hunters were not superior to the animals they hunt. In other words, he was probably what most other hunters call an 'Old ways' hunter. Almost all Tauren hunters had the same ideals, though, it being part of their culture. He drifted back to reality as he saw the camp site was just on the horizon, and was relieved to be able to lie down and go to sleep. The camp was just a large tent surrounded by many different sized bags, situated in a clearing. He was greeted by a grunt from his pack kodo Gladestomp, but went straight to his "bed" and put his head down, and fell into an uneasy sleep, ailed by many questions, even if you wouldn't consider them important …


	2. Lighter Than Air

Maulbane woke up early and was ready to take the decently long ride back to the outpost. Goretusk, having had a tiring day, was not as ready, but got up nonetheless. Gladestomp - who had until now been ignored - was impatiently grunting, wanting to get back to the grassy meadows, hills and blue fluffy skies of Mulgore, and Maulbane understood, considering the large kodo had been confined to the camp and surrounding jungle for at least two weeks, living on the tasteless grass and plants in the area.

The massive creature was like a dinosaur, with a gigantic and prehistoric frame, which was covered in extremely thick, brown leather (with creamy spots). He had a tail about as long as his body, and two large horns that looked like the kind you find on deer, crowning his head. You could probably fit about three Taurens on a kodo's back, without gear. Not only were they large, they had extreme endurance and strength, able to carry packs as heavy as them, even sometimes more. Back at the camp, with Gladestomp still complaining, Maulbane packed up all his gear, put it into the large bags and sacks hanging from Gladestomp's side, and hopped onto the large mount with Goretusk and pulled on the reins.

They headed for the road, making more sound than they had earlier in the week. For probably the first time Maulbane didn't drift off into his own thoughts, concentrating on the reins and keeping Goretusk's sharp little tusks from jabbing into his back. They passed many trees, vines and some troll ruins (Maulbane would have even slowed down and explored for a while, had there not been a group of bloodscalp trolls there) and would have gotten into more than a large bit of danger with a tribe of ogres (which were rather too close to the road for his liking) if he didn't speed up before one of their lookouts spotted him. Apart from those few problems, being on the road was much better than roughing it in the jungle, where worse things hide in the shadows. He arrived at the outpost at high noon with equally high spirits, because this was the first time in weeks he had been near civilization. The outpost itself was on the outside a rather messy group of structures, about five buildings surrounded by a huge palisade, about as high as a house's roof. The only buildings inside the base Maulbane cared about were the zeppelin tower and the guard room. The guards standing outside the front entrance recognized him, saving the weary hunter a long explanation. He had already waited two weeks, and he didn't want to waste any more time, so he went straight to the guard captain, who was enjoying a nice lie down on a wooden chair.

He was annoyed to have been woken up, but then he noticed who was talking to him, and calmed down. Maulbane quickly told him that he had completed the task, and handed him the fang for proof, and then the guard captain (Maulbane never caught his name, which doesn't happen much for him) smiled, thanked him and handed him his reward: twenty gold coins. It doesn't seem like much, but if 50 copper coins (which is half a silver coin, and it takes 100 silver coins to make up a gold coin) buys 20 pieces of decent food, imagine what twenty gold coins could buy you. He was happy with his reward, but by now really wanted to get home and, well, relax.

It had been so long in Stranglethorn he barely remembered why he came here in the first place, it may have been something to do with goblins. Anyways, it didn't matter because his helium-filled ticket out of the dense jungle was right in from of him. The zeppelin had arrived just over an hour ago, and was leaving in a few minutes. He would have liked to hang around the Stranglethorn coast for a while, because it had some of the best beaches on the entire continent (if you can get around the Crocolisks) He didn't waste time briskly walking up the stairs to the top of the zeppelin tower, which was a long way, with Goretusk at his heels. The gigantic flying machine was impressive to behold: Kind of like a cruise boat for the air.

It had four levels inside it, first was the deck, with all the eating and drinking facilities, and many spots to relax. Second was where all the passengers were accommodated, with one large corridor with many cabins alongside it (about twenty). The third was the engine rooms, filled with machinery and of course many, many goblins. The fourth level of the craft was a cargo hold and stables, with many boxes of miscellaneous items.

Gladestomp fit snugly into the cargo hold, with a big bale of hay to chew on for the boring two days flight over the sea to his favourite continent, Kalimdor, and Maulbane found a small room for himself, where he put his things. He took off his armour for the first time since he arrived (when you're a hunter and sleeping in the jungle, you never leave anything to chance) and fell into a nice, cosy sleep.


	3. Persistence

Morning arrived, and they were half way through their trip on the zeppelin. Maulbane briefly considered that he had an entire day's worth of time to kill and almost nothing to do, when he heard what had woke him up.

Raucous laughter was coming from the deck of the large zeppelin, and Maulbane walked up to meet whoever was having such a great time. The origin of the laughter was an orc (exactly what you would expect from the word orc: Green skin and a rough face, orcs were about a centimetre below the height of your average human, but were wider (with the obvious build of a warrior, broad shoulders and that battle-worn look you only find on people that fought for a living)) and a tall (even for their kind, about seven and a half feet) troll, with bluish skin and two nasty tusks jutting out of either side of his mouth that curled upwards (like Goretusk's), laughing at some of their home-grown jokes they were sharing. While the crew of the zeppelin (all goblins) were grumpy, and the booming laughter wasn't helping their headaches, Maulbane had had a decently lonely and serious time out in the wilderness and walked over, eager to introduce himself.

He sat himself down next to the two, and about ten seconds later the troll noticed him."Who you be, 'Mon?" said the troll with a deep accent (A deep Jamaican accent, at least it would be called that if the book was based on earth).

"I'm Maulbane, who are you?"

"I'm Kavijin and my friend ova' here is Kor'La."

"Kor'La is a pretty unique name" Maulbane thought out loud.

"Well I've never heard of a Tauren named Maulbane, so I guess you two are alike!"

The three burst into laughter, the goblins wincing even harder thanks to the addition of a loud Tauren to the chorus. As the laughter subsided, the orc, Kor'La, spoke up.

"Hey, Hunter. Have you been doing any work for Nesingwary?"

"Huh?"

"I already know you're a hunter, it's a bit obvious by the way you dress."

"Oh, right... No, I did a small job at Grom'Gol."

"Ooooh... Right... Okay, then""Why do you ask anyways?"

"It's just because most of the hunters around here have been flocking to his camp, I don't know what for, it must be pretty big."

Maulbane heard this, and if he had decided to go back to Stranglethorn in search of this prize, the story would have turned out differently. But as it happens, he thought it over and decided against it, which may have been either a turn for the better, or a turn for the worse.

"So, what do you think?"

"Sounds good, but I'll have to say no."

"Okay Mon', if ya' sure."

"Anyways, where are you headed to?" Maulbane changed the subject.

"We're both going to Durotar, friends and family, et cetera. What about you?"

"Same thing, except not so much the family part."

"Why not? I thought you Taurens were into the whole family thing."

"I don't have many relatives, if that's what you mean""Mmm... Okay."

It seems three goblins were drawing straws or playing rock-paper-scissors in the background, and then a slightly nervous one walked over to the trio.

"Erm... Uuuh..."

"Spit it out already!"

"Err ... Captain says deck's closing."

"What! You have it wrong, we were up here all night last time we had a zeppelin trip" "Uh ... Sorry ..."

"There's nothing to be sorry about, we're staying up here!"

Kor'La was getting irritated, because he knew the goblins wanted them off the deck because they didn't like their noise.

"No can do, Sir."

"What do you mean, no can do?"The goblin gulped "By that, I mean you're going to have to leave one way or another."

Kavijin swung around and grabbed the new sweaty goblin by his collar and said in a low, dark voice "are you trying to intimidate us, little goblin?"

"No, o-o-of course not!"

The troll instantly changed his mood comically into a bright and cheery one.

"Oh, that's fine 'den! In dat case I'll have me another one of those tankards of gorlok brew, if dat's okay wit' ya."

"Of course sir! Right away sir!"

As the goblin scurried away and began to fill up a tankard with the drink, Maulbane noticed Kor'La and Kavijin were attempting (and failing) to hold in their laughter. A few seconds later they gave in, booming chuckles filling the air once again.

"That was great!" said the orc (between howls of laughter).

"It's all in part o' da' job of being a troll, you gotta be mean sometimes!" replied Kavijin, also between snorts and giggles. Maulbane felt like he was already gaining two new friends, and friends were great to have, and not only for telling jokes to.

"Hey Maulbane, is that your pig?" Kor'La asked.

"It's a boar, and yes... Why?"

"He's about to be taught how to fly by the goblins" Oh no. The goblins must have mistaken him for a stowaway, and they were about to throw him overboard. The group of goblins who were trying to dodge the boar's flailing limbs and chuck it over the edge of the zeppelin were not ready for the gigantic, furious Tauren charging towards them.

They dropped Goretusk and began cowering (A goblin trait), but nothing happened. They looked hesitantly to where the Tauren was coming from and only saw the large hunter walking back to his chair with the boar walking right beside him. They got up, angry and confused at what just happened, but decided to drop it, because considering they thought they were about to die a moment ago, things had turned out more than slightly better for them than planned.

When Maulbane sat down again, he resettled into his jovial mood.

"Hey, I just thought of something"

Kor'La started the conversation.

"What would that be?" Maulbane asked.

"Actually, never mind, it's a stupid idea."

"Aw come on, now ya' got us interested."

"Okay, fine... I think the three of us should go to blackrock mountain, I've heard of the loot there and I know a lot of people who need adventurers like us to -"

"Are you crazy, 'Mon?! That place is scary enough from the outside, you will Neva' get this troll anywhere near the place."

"It's not that bad, you wimp. With the three of us, we can easily take them!"

"Oh yeah, I believe ya, Mon. And by that, I bein' sarc-sa-umm... What's 'dat word again?"

"It's sarcastic, and I agree with Kavijin here, that place is a bit out of our league" Maulbane voiced his opinion

"See, Mon'? Even big and beefy (Maulbane winced at that) here agrees with me"

"I still think we can take those dark iron dwarves, they can't be that strong, they're only about a meter high"

"Trust me, they're tougher on the inside" Maulbane had fought dwarves before, they had some kind of inner strength and didn't match their physical size.

"Humph"

"Aww come on Mon', don't get all grumpy"

"I'm not..."

"Are so"

"Anyways... I'm tired, I'm going to head to my room for the rest of the night.

"Okay, see ya'" And so as the day ended, all three decided to go to their bunks, though they all had many thoughts burdening them, perhaps a condition caught from Maulbane? As their eyes close slowly, so does this chapter close, the trio ready for another day.


	4. Exploration

A thirteen (or so) year old Maulbane was sitting in front of Chief Hawkwind and the small council of elders (about four people altogether), nervous and frightened.

The Chieftan addressed Maulbane in Taurahe, the Tauren's language. "Ish-ne-alo Por-ah, Hunter, you have grown both in mind and in spirit during your time here, but now it is time for you to leave, at least for now"

"Chieftain Hawkwind, why? Have I done something wrong? I'm sorry, please let me stay, I won't tease anyone anymore, I promise!" Maulbane's small eyes were beginning to fill up with tears. The Chieftan chuckled

"No, Maulbane. I am sending you to do the rites of the Earthmother"

"Really?" Maulbane's eyes lit up with joy

"Why would I lie about something like that, young Tauren? Maulbane looked sheepish for a moment, but that wasn't enough to dim his excitement. The rites of the Earthmother! The other children were going to be so jealous when he told them! Adolescent Taurens were sometimes not allowed to complete the rights at all, let alone a child. He fell asleep...

And woke up... Maulbane had had a light sleep, but that wasn't new at all. He raised his head from the comfy bed, the hunter's natural suspicion kicking in. He checked that all his possessions were still in his room (which they were, of course. Even if the goblins wanted to steal something from him, his little bout of fury on the deck last afternoon would have knocked out any such thoughts) and put all his gear back on. He wanted to see how close they were to Kalimdor, so he went up to the deck, past the many rooms and up a few flights of stairs.

His two buddies were not in their usual spot, so he decided to walk to the edge of the deck and take in the sights. He watched the line the zeppelin cut over the water as it flew past for a few minutes, then he tired of that, and explored the craft he was on. He had already been on the deck and the corridors were all the same, so he look around the engine room. It was what he expected - lots of goblin machinery and goblins. There were many huge machines generating large columns of smoke and steam, and many other such things (since Maulbane was no engineer, he had no idea what any of the machines were. Nonetheless, he liked to explore, and these things were quite fascinating). He wondered if he was allowed here, but since none of the engineers even looked at him, he guessed it was okay. Something large and red caught his eye, in the corner of the engine room - it looked like one of those new fangled goblin rockets - Now that was interesting. He went over to it, and was about to touch it when...

"No! Don't touch it!" Maulbane almost jumped out of his skin, then turned around and saw the small, soot covered goblin, looking annoyed

"Do you KNOW how unstable that thing is? HUH?!" The green creature pretty much shouted in his ear, with his high-pitched voice

"Umm... No?" Maulbane knew that goblin inventions tended to blow up half the time (and that is being generous), but surely touching it wouldn't do anything.

"And that, my friend, is why you should leave the touching of UNSTABLE MACHINERY to me!" His pointed green ears seemed to go dark red when he stressed the 'unstable machinery' bit.

"Right... Okay..."

"So?"

"Huh?"

"GO AWAY!" Screamed the annoyed - and annoying - goblin, jumping up and down and stamping his feet. "Humph" Maulbane thought "Should have remembered how touchy goblins are when it comes to their gadgets" Thanks to the goblin engineer (who was now behind him as he walked back to the deck), his curiosity had been smothered, but not forever. For the present, he decided to go up to the deck and sit down, and give Goretusk his breakfast. As soon as he called for him, the boar came waddling over.

"Today's special is... It's here somewhere... Ah, there we go" Maulbane pulled out a large mushroom, picked from... Somewhere.

"Enjoy" And Goretusk did (that doesn't mean much though, he eats anything) As Goretusk was chomping down his brekky, Maulbane finally noticed his two friends, at their usual spot. He left Goretusk to eat and went over to them.

"There he is!"

"Hello"

"So, what do you think about blackrock depths?"

"No, Kor'La"

"Why not? I can't understand why you WOULDN'T want to go there"

"is you serious, 'Mon? That place is bad ju-ju"

"Well, you're a troll. Maulbane, why wouldn't you want to go?"

"I don't like dungeons... I am a Tauren after all."

"It's not as bad as you think..."

"That may be so, but I really have to say no..."

"What if we find more people? I know a rogue and a priest" Maulbane thought this over. Five people was an ideal amount, at least he had heard

"Maybe, but I still don't know"

"I think it sounds alright, but make sure we have 'dose people when we go" Kavijin was convinced fast.

"When? How do we even know we're going yet?" Maulbane was still against the idea.

"Oh, come on, Maul. I'm a warrior, Kavijin's a shaman and you're a hunter. It's practically set in concrete" Maulbane thought hard, for these kind of moments were the ones that could change life to death and wealthy to poor... He mulled over every fact, everything he thought he could go wrong, and everything that could go his way, leaving his claustrophobia out of the equation. After a whole five minutes of silence, he raised his head, took a deep breath in, and hoped that he had made the right decision... An uneasy smile on his lips...

"STUPID CHILD! GET OUT OF MY WAY!" The angry Undead warlock shouted. Maulbane was excited, for he had completed his trials (which were as hard as they all said). Well, all except for one, which was the reason he was excited in the first place. The final trial was to enter the great Tauren capital city (well, it was the only city Tauren city. In such a world cities are a rarity, but towns are dotted across all the continents of Azeroth), Thunder Bluff, for the first time. He had heard about it before, but there are special rules to enter Thunder Bluff. Either you must have completed the rites of the Earthmother or you have to prove yourself to the Taurens in another way, usually by helping one of them or aiding them in battles. Anyways, that didn't matter now, because he was finally inside the great city of Thunder Bluff! And to think he was bursting with excitement then, when he heard that he would actually meet Cairne Bloodhoof HIMSELF was awe-inspiring! Cairne Bloodhoof was the legendary leader of the Tauren race, who united all the nomadic tribes living in the Barrens and beyond, and with all of their might under a single banner, and much help from the orcs, defeated their ancient enemy, the Kolkar Centaur. And after that, he build the great city of thunder bluff, on top of three huge mesas in Mulgore. He was an amazing Tauren, probably the greatest leader their race had ever had. And to think, he was going to meet him! He was slightly lost and a bit dizzy after getting off the elevator that took him up here, but apart from that he was as right as rain. Luckily that was only a figure of speech, because rain would have made the day a little less exciting for the young and aspiring Tauren. Anyways, after weaving through many serious looking hunters, warriors, mages, warlocks, priests, paladins, rogues and shamans, he found the highest mesa, and he had just reached the tent of the great leader, when... "Snap out of it, Maulbane" "Earth to Maulbane?" "Hehe, he's got da jungle fever, mon'" Kavijin added "You know that doesn't exist, you trolls just made it up' Kor'La retorted "Okay, okay, I don't care... I have a question though... Who's going to be the boss?" Then they got to work ...


	5. Sands of Durotar

Only five minutes after his agreeing with the plan, they had begun rapidly creating plans for everything, much like a couple of exited children. In five minutes, they knew the method of transport they would take to blackrock mountain, in ten they knew who would be doing what job, and in fifteen they had decided what to take and even what kind of enhancements to put onto their weaponry. Maulbane had started grudgingly, but begun to like the plan more and more, and then he began to give his own ideas for it. By 30 minutes, the long zeppelin trip was finally concluded. With two minutes until the massive craft landed just outside Orgrimmar (the orcs' capital city, and Maulbane would have liked to have gone shopping there, or talking to the locals, had he not been on such a schedule).

Goblins were running all over the place, even climbing around the side of the ship. Ropes were being thrown around, people being stirred out of their cabins, noisy and high-pitched goblins shouting orders and less noisy goblins doing all the work. This was the part of a zeppelin ride Maulbane hated the most. You're not allowed to help, but you're always in the way or stepping on somebody's foot, or something. Sadly, it was as bad as he had always remembered it to be. Kavijin tried to walk over to his bag (which was conveniently on the other side of the deck) but accidentally stepped on goblin... Again (well, actually for the twelfth time in half a minute). It seemed the little creatures were coming out of the woodwork, and in some cases they actually were literally coming out of trapdoors in the wooden walls. Everybody's luggage was being taken out of their cabins and Maulbane was getting bored. They could now see the beach, and it was very close... A mere half a minute away at most. All the work was done, so everyone sat down on the deck, waiting for the zeppelin to land. It was a simple procedure: The zeppelin would slow down half a kilometre from the 'zeppelin tower', then slowly pull in and secure itself to one of the four large platforms, which was just happening now. The goblins weren't shouting as loud, which was good. The next thirty seconds were not eventful, unless you count a person falling over as the zeppelin pulled in an event. The zeppelin slowed down and gracefully slid next to the platform, where maybe eighteen goblins were fastening it to the tower with ropes.

Maulbane heard a conversation happening just behind him, between a large goblin (for a goblin) and a smaller goblin, who had lighter skin than the other goblins around him, and a distinctive gold earring. The larger one was standing with his back to Maulbane, and seemed to be holding something up to the second goblin, but Maulbane couldn't see what it was.

"Then how do you explain that there wasn't one single rupture on the entire trip?" The taller goblin said "Well, it wasn't with your stupid lucky doll... Charm... Thing... Whatever it is" said the shorter goblin

"You're just jealous because I got this thing for only two gold coins!"

"I say it's a rip-off, it's just a piece of... What Is it made of?"

"He said it was made out of Gorilla hair""Well, that's totally not disgusting"

"Whatever you say, I'm the one with the good luck charm!"

"Right... Well, see you" The taller goblin turned to face Maulbane and started to walk off in the opposite direction of the goblin with the earring, and Maulbane saw what they were talking about, a small (about six centimetres high) doll, shaped like a little crude human. It wasn't as interesting as Maulbane anticipated it to be, but you learn important things every day, even if they don't seem important when you first learn them. That said, it wasn't important now, if ever (though he did note how the goblin was so superstitious - Most goblins only care about two things: Money and Gadgets) so he went back to what he was doing before, which was getting ready to get off the zeppelin. Kor'La and Kavijin were already off, so he picked up as many of his possessions that he could carry (which was all of them, the really heavy ones were with Gladestomp) and disembarked, dodging other passengers and little green men. As his first foot hit the strong wooden platform, he started to feel dizzy, but that passed after a few seconds. Kor'La and Kavijin were gone, probably for a while, because part of the plan was that they would meet up at a proposed spot at a certain time, which was fine for Maulbane. He couldn't wait to get back home, to his house in thunder bluff. He walked across the platform, away from the noisy goblins and passengers embracing loved ones, or just shouting for the sake of it. He kept walking down the stairs of the tower and out into a lower platform, which was maybe three meters up from the ground, with Goretusk (as always) at his heels which was where all the passengers were collecting their cargo and trusty steeds.

Maulbane found Gladestomp being held by a red faced, tired-looking goblin, and relieved him of his burden, jumping onto his kodo, placing some of his smaller items he was holding (a green leather-bound canteen, among other things) into one of the large animal's saddle bags, and then placed Goretusk into a little basket he had made himself, and the boar fell into the container with a little thump. A second later his head rose out of the top of basket, and then they were ready to leave. as he they got down the last flight of stairs and onto the dusty red sand of Durotar, he pulled hard on the reins and felt the result, a sharp burst of speed. Maulbane wondered if anything had changed while he had gone. If anything had, it was not the blistering heat.

Taking the shortest route back to his destination, he began by taking the main road, straight through durotar and eventually into the Barrens. He hit the aforementioned main road a mere thirty seconds past the zeppelin tower, a large, slightly paved road with magical lights on either side of it, at least Maulbane thought they were magical. One thing he knew was that Gladestomp was loving being able to ride around in the open once more. Maulbane liked riding fast, but the red (and extremely loose) dust that was being kicked up kept getting in every conceivable place on his person and his mount, not to mention all his bags. Nonetheless, he didn't slow down, for he was much to eager to get to the Barrens, which was pretty much the half way point for the trip back to Mulgore, and it was also quite a picturesque place, much like a large savannah.

But it was also extremely dangerous, not only are there raptors, lions, crocilisks, Quilboars and wild thunderhorns (large ancestors of kodos, able to shoot small amounts of lighting out of its head), the entire region of the barrens was a war zone. There was a dangerous demon worshiping cult, named the burning blade that operated both in Durotar and in the barrens, but they are stronger in the barrens. But the biggest danger of all is from the alliance. because they send out raiding parties almost once a week or even sooner, Slaughtering as many people as they can, turning the Barrens' only horde town (the Crossroads) into a military outpost, and driving away most of the peaceful residents. Of course, quite a few adventurers never encounter these obstacles, but many , however, do. But he wasn't there yet, and that was why he was riding fast.

He passed many boar farms and scorpions, but mostly the trip was bland. He had seen durotar before, and while for the first few visits the red sandy ground, and the red hills and cliffs looked amazing and so foreign, it begins to get bland, which had happened for Maulbane. Gladestomp didn't care in the least though, almost bounding towards their first stop - Razor Hill outpost, mainly a military town, but many passers-by stop in for the inn (Maulbane would have chuckled at that pun) and its food, drink, and most importantly, its beds. Razor hill wasn't very far away at all - just a short trip through a wide canyon, which the main road ran through. As he entered said canyon, he looked annoyed. This was because of past experiences with the harpies that lived in the smaller canyons and crags that sprouted from the larger one. They were too aggressive for his taste, and their claws hurt. Though there are many different clans and types of harpy, they all have a few key similarities: They have human (Female) bodies and heads, but the ends of all of their limbs are that of birds, covered in feathers and ending in sharp talons, with wings and pale skin that was usually tinged a certain color. The color of their skin and feathers depends on what clan they are in, and for Durotar, they were the Dustwind clan, with purple feathers and light bluish skin. The clans of harpies are usually comprised of many fighters and hunters, and a few harpy witches, who had a basic control over lightning magic.

Though he didn't see any yet in their 'Usual' spot, it always pays to be alert, which he was. Gladestomp continued to 'gallop' (kodos aren't horses, they do more of a charge or a run than a gallop) his way along the dirty road, with Goretusk's head bobbing around dizzily. At the half-way point through the canyon, Something was plaguing his mind - The fact that there wasn't just a lack of harpies, he hadn't seen a single one. Growing alarmed, Maulbane made preparations for a possible harpy ambush, readying his gun which was already by side. He consoled himself with the fact that the harpies were probably had probably just been scared away by a razor hill patrol, but as always, he was ready for anything (well, not ANYTHING, but almost every possibility). At the halfway point through the canyon, his fears were realized...


	6. Ravager

There were at least seven harpies swooping down at him from the top of the canyon, and another four more in front of him, springing up from behind discarded crates and wagons which littered the sides of the road. Maulbane wasn't caught by surprise , And since he had his gun ready, he was instantly ready to hold his ground. The harpies flying down at him were still about twenty meters away, so he aimed his gun at the closest of them, aimed quickly, and fired. In such a narrow area, there was a huge bang, followed by the echo. One or two of the harpies yelped from having their eardrums damaged, but the rest kept going. All except the one was now motionless on the ground, a bullet inside its forehead. Maulbane reloaded his gun, loading another pullet and placing more powder in it, and fired again.

The bullet went straight into the harpy's chin, shattering and crushing bone and rendering the foe helpless. A third shot reverberated through the canyon, and killed another Harpy. The survivors were only ten meters away now, descending faster than ever. The ones on the ground were also about fifteen meters away, leaving Maulbane wanting for a better defensive spot. As he let his fourth shot go, killing another harpy as efficiently as the last shots, The harpies who were charging along the ground were met with an equally angry Goretusk. He had jumped out of his basket quite a while ago, and was now running full-speed towards the group of charging harpies. As Goretusk collided with the harpies, Maulbane let a fifth (and final) shot go, ripping apart the left arm of one of the harpies. As Goretusk leaped and tore at the first throat he could find, Maulbane had pulled out his battle-worn and trusted Axe, the Ravager. It was a monster by many standards, just as tall as the already high Maulbane, with a sinister pattern of red and black, contrasting the owner of it, that played across the entire surface of the killing tool.

It had seen almost as many battles as Maulbane had seen the stars, having been taken from person to person, and now it was in his hands. It wasn't some kind of ancient artefact, or magic Axe of destruction, but it was very powerful in the right hands, as are all weapons. It was then pulled out of its humble leather scabbard, raised to full height, and slashed through the air, cutting a harpy straight through the chest, slicing the creature into two. As the separated halves of the recently deceased harpy fell with a sound akin to, well, falling dead meat, a second harpy was struck with the weapon, this time in a unsettlingly neat diagonal line, going straight across its right shoulder, to its left hip. The owner of this nasty wound began writhing in pain on the red sand, while Maulbane was already thrusting his axe into a third victim, leaving only the three ones who were assaulting by ground alive, for one unfortunate attacker had had most of its throat lying strewn across the canyon floor, a piece of Goretusk's handiwork.

The mentioned Goretusk was now sinking his jagged and uneven teeth into one of the last harpy's legs, but the harpy slashed the animal brutally across the back. But even after that, Goretusk still held on. Maulbane put his axe away and then trained his gun on the last harpy, who was about to sneak up on the occupied Goretusk. She never got to her objective, being knocked to the ground by the force of the first shot, which hit her in the shoulder which was facing Maulbane, and then a second shot got her in between the eyes. There was only the last harpy left, but it had plans which didn't involve being lobotomised. As Maulbane aimed his gun, the harpy shook Goretusk off in a final desperate move, then swooped up a great speed, dodging Maulbane's shot with ease. Then, it did something new: Electricity began to crackle around her wrists, gathering into balls of pure, crackling energy, building up into a ball while she was dodging all of Maulbane's shots, which were growing more and more desperate and inaccurate, until the twenty second process was complete. The ball of pure electricity discharged from the hands of the Harpy, speeding through the air, while Maulbane jumped out of the way... And Failed. Two hundred and twenty volts of electricity shot through his skin, sending excruciating pain through every one of his nerves and sending him flying backwards, and just as he closed his eyes he saw the Harpy being torn apart by an angry Gladestomp, into halves, quarters, fifths, tenths ...

Chapter Seven:

Wake up, Maulbane.

"Maulbane" Cairne Bloodhoof was addressing the fourteen-year-old hunter.

"Yes, my Chieftan?"

"I have a test for you."

"Anything you wish."

"It is time for you to tame your pet – Your companion, who will walk in your footsteps, who will accompany you in every single one of your endeavors. Its spirit shall be tied directly to yours, and I now send you out of Mulgore, to find a creature that has that link with you. You will only need a few provisions, I expect you to be ready in four hours."

"But... Where do i begin? What do I do?"

"Use your instincts, hunter. You're supposed to be renowned for them."

"Of course, sorry."

"It is time for you to leave, may the ancestors smile upon you."

"And you, Chieftan" both the Taurens saluted.

As he left the tent, he didn't feel excitement, only despair. What should he do? Where to go? He thought he would get some kind of inspiration, and know straight where to go. But this wasn't some kind of child's storybook, where a light bulb pings above his head, and all is well. He knew now that it was up to him to find his companion, the animal that would walk the same path as him, whether to wealth or lack, fame or ruin. It was supposed to be one of the most meaningful things he would experience, but it didn't seem that epic, or meaningful. All he had to do was tame some beast and return home. Maybe Cairne overestimated the importance of this task? Maybe... Maybe Maulbane was wrong, but he wouldn't know until he got back. He borrowed a kodo from a friend in Thunder Bluff, packed his things and left his home with the sun behind him, making it look as if his shadow was trying to convince him to go back. He continued going though, even though he didn't know where ...

"Wake up, Maulbane!" A swollen eye opened.

"Wake up!" A second eye opened.

"Thank god you're okay... What on earth happened? We just found you lying unconscious with dead harpies EVERYWHERE. If that was you, Maul, you haven't lost your touch..." The figure chuckled, and Maulbane was beginning to recognize the voice, and as his eyes adjusted, the face.

"Commander... Kaltunk?" He winced at the pain when he tried to move his jaw, but he spoke anyway. Kaltunk was an old friend, he had fought alongside him for a while and they had helped each other out whenever they needed help. When they were killing harpies and Scorpids together, When he was living in Razor Hill, Goretusk was only a young piglet.

"The very"

"How ... Did I ..."

"Survive? Get here? Simple, actually. A band of scouts came in a day ago with you on a makeshift stretcher, and i knew from the moment i saw you that it was Maulbane. Those harpies really have it in for you, don't they?"

Maulbane tried to laugh, but it hurt too much. He felt helpless, and he didn't like it. Though his injuries would heal fast, all he wanted to do was ride to Mulgore without stopping. Thanks to a pack of harpy hunters, that wasn't going to happen.

"Euuuuuurgh"

"If you're wondering, it will only take a few days for you to recover, and your kodo is in the stable eating right now. But would like you to stay for a while, relive the past?

"we'll see, old friend, but I don't think I can"

"Shame..." The commander sighed, then said:

"Well, how about you have a piece of cactus apple surprise?"

"Couldn't hurt" Maulbane grinned, although it hurt to say it. Then, another orc came in with a plate of cactus apple surprise, and urged Maulbane to eat. It was a good treat, made out of the cactus apples that grow in Durotar. Maulbane ate it gladly, but he really wanted to begin leaving, he was probably late, and he was feeling fine now.

"Kaltunk, I'm sorry, but i really have to leave now. I must be late as it is, and if-" He winced at the pain in his jaw here "-If i stay any longer, I'll definitely be late"

"I thought you just got back from Stranglethorn, what could you possibly be doing?"

"I've made plans"

"I'll never understand you hunters, always on the move... Oh well. If you're sure about it, Gladestomp is waiting for you in the stable. Also, we've given you some extra food for the rest of your journey"

"Thank you for your hospitality, Kaltunk"

"No problem"

Maulbane rose from his bed, walked out of the room, and out into the red land outside ...


	7. Get up, Maulbane

He was in a typical orc base, almost exact to Grom'Gol, except it had many more buildings, including the Inn, a large barracks (which dominated most of the town), and a fortified bunker (orcish style, with two levels) with a few guards looking out of it. He already knew where the stable was, because he had been here before, and he had already collected his things from his bedside, so he was ready to go already. He felt bad leaving this abruptly, but he was very homesick, and he had to work on their crazy plan. So he mounted Gladestomp, undid the leash holding him at the stable, scooped up Goretusk from the ground and placed him in the basket, and began to leave. He was leaving when Kaltunk shouted after him "Are you sure you don't want an escort?"

Maulbane thought about the encounter with the harpies, and said: "That would be excellent" He still had quite a few bruises and injuries, on top of feeling weak, and wouldn't do well in a fight on his own. Kaltunk called out two armored riders, named Jhash and Kerr (they were both orcs, riding wolves). They went single-file behind Maulbane, and they left, waving back to the town.

They were closer to the Durotar-Barrens border now, it being just on the horizon. Kerr, the larger of the two riders, tried striking up a conversation, but it died down quite fast, since they had nothing substantial to talk about. Goretusk was enjoying himself without the need for conversation, amusing himself by trying to eat flies as they passed by. Maulbane had his eyes on the small river which divided the red sand of Durotar from the yellow Savannah of the Barrens. They had grown closer to it quite fast, and Maulbane could see it properly in the distance. At this point, they were entering th e Quilboar Grounds (not very pretty beasts, who had bodies roughly as wide as orcs, though slightly shorter than your average orc by maybe a centimeter or two, but with the face and fur of a boar, with spines going down their backs.

In short, the name 'Quilboar' did not leave much to the imagination when you wondered what they looked like). The grounds themselves were obvious, on account of the huge vines (four meters long) that twisted through the sand and rock in the area. Also, their homes (crude wooden things, attached high up on the rocks). a Razormane (Like many of the wild creatures of Azeroth such as harpies, they have their own different styles and tribes) Quilboar who was too close to the road tried charging the trio with a crude Axe, clenching it tightly in its three fingers, but ended up screaming on the ground with an arrow in its right cheek, not anywhere close to its target.

The rider who had fired the arrow (Jhash) shook his head and kept moving. Maulbane didn't have fun killing, and neither did the two riders, but he had to admire their efficiency. Jhash hadn't even dismounted from his wolf. They kept moving, passing many Quilboars and their settlements, Occasionally being forced to kill them, though only a few because they usually don't live near the roads. and the bridge which went across the dividing river (named the Southfury, it cuts its way through four different regions, those being Azshara, Ashenvale, Durotar and the Barrens, before reaching the sea) getting closer and closer, until they were finally out of the Quilboar grounds (to the relief of the nervous Maulbane), and barely a quarter of a kilometer away from the bridge. It wasn't showy, but it worked well. It looked different from the average bridges that the other races liked to use, being shaped like a ramp, rising above the water and back to normal level in a smooth arc, with a makeshift ceiling above it.

It was wide enough to fit a kodo, which usually was the widest thing that went across. Anything wider would have to use the much larger bridge at Orgrimmar. They closed to distance fast, and soon the sounds of their mounts' feet were thumping on sturdy wood. Many people enjoy painting pictures at this spot, because of the amazing sight, because there is no gradual change from Durotar to the Barrens, for as you cross the bridge, you see it instantly changes from red to yellow (or vice-versa). Maulbane liked sights, but he almost never managed to stop and see them. This time he decided he would, though. On the other bank of the Southfury river he pulled on Gladestomp's reins and jumped off, rummaging through his bags for what he wanted, which he found; a sandwich made of banana bread, with some other tasty ingredients including pickle and a slice of plainstrider meat. Very fresh, being one of the things that the very hospitable orcs from Razor Hill had given him. For Goretusk, he put a big slice of crocilisk meat down for him (a treat which he managed to haggle off a goblin while he was on the zeppelin (still good)), and Goretusk began gobbling it up as voraciously as ever, making some unappealing slurping sounds as he ate. Jhash and Kerr also had their lunch, eating what looked like a ham.

Luckily Goretusk didn't see, he was too busy eating his own food. Gladestomp indignantly ate the clumps of grass along the bank, though it probably didn't taste very good. As they finished their lunch, they threw the scraps into the river, as as they had anticipated, a swarm of crocilisks was soon upon it. They left quickly after that, finally in the barrens. In front of them was the dirt road, and just on the side of it was an orc bunker, probably a warning post for the crossroads. There were a few orc grunts milling around outside it, but none of them looked very interested, as they had probably got up hours before dawn for their shifts. Most of them probably lived in either Razor Hill or the Crossroads, and both of those towns were far away. The land itself seemed more alert, with gazelle skittering around, lions prowling through the long grass and Barrens kodos wandering, among many more animals, and they were all close to the road. Maulbane also spotted a Raptor or two roaming the long grass. It was a sunny day and not a cloud above, so Maulbane enjoyed the sights. There wasn't much traffic along the wide road, apart from the occasional soldier or goblin trader from Ratchet (a goblin port town). Apart from just the Savannah, in the barrens there are many pools and oasis's, created by a night elf Mage who tried tapping into the power of the wailing caverns to bring life to the Barrens. It is said he has been sleeping deep within the cave system for years, under a strange curse. Not only that, it was said his actions unleashed a mutated race of creatures, named the deviates.

But Maulbane didn't deal in rumors. Jhash and Kerr looked content enough with their escort mission, and Goretusk was taking a power nap. He could see the crossroads in the distance, but he had all the time in the world. Taking in the sights, he slowly meandered towards the town, but he had enough sense not to stop. The Kolkar Centaur hide in many unexpected places, and their ambushes are devastating. Some of their people have an extreme knowledge of lightning magics, much more powerful than the harpys'. They passed close to one of the three oases, filled with bright green plants, palm trees and many tropical plants. It was about a kilometer large. They took a nice, slow walk along the road, staying slow to enjoy the sight of the oasis. It didn't last forever, though. When a group of five Kolkar came out of the oasis, Maulbane was pretty sure their looks alone could kill. After that, they didn't have any time to spare on trivialities such as the view. They increased speed to a brisk trot, and accelerated into a gallop. With the wind against his face, Maulbane could just about see the Crossroads. The trio ran past a boar farm and couldn't help having a guilty laugh at a small orcish child running away from a swarm of angry bees.

It was dark when Maulbane, Jhash and Kerr arrived at the crossroads. The town looked like Razor Hill, except it had a lot of Tauren architecture as well. Many of the houses and stalls were made in Tauren style, as was the wall surrounding the town. But the inn and the guard towers were orcish, making a messy, multicultural style. There were two alert guards outside, and bones all around the surrounding land. The two orcs were already very kind by helping Maulbane, and when they said they had to return to Razor Hill, he didn't waste any of their time. The two riders left at night, their wolves' bodies illuminated by flickering roadside lights.


End file.
